If you haven’t heard about the Life Cube Project temporarily located in downtown Las Vegas, allow me to fill you in!

The Life Cube started six years ago when Scott Cohen wanted to create an art sculpture for Burning Man, an annual music and art gathering in the Nevada desert. Scott’s project made its big debut in 2011 and has had a huge impact on those who’ve helped build and paint it. There was even a wedding inside the structure at one point! This is the second time the Life Cube has been to Las Vegas and once again we have seen the community come together at a monumental rate. Watching friends, family, and strangers gather together to paint, sing, hug, dance, and share love is an amazing feeling. Not only do we get to decorate it with our own original ideas and inspirational quotes, there is also an array of events held around the Cube such as yoga and meditation classes, drum circles, local bands and DJs, and educational workshops. No sponsors necessary, this project is run solely by the community volunteering their most valuable asset; their time. The incredible dedication, energy, and passion from the volunteers is all that’s needed to fuel the Life Cube’s fire.

The greatest thing about this project is that anyone can participate, no matter your age, religion, occupation, or skill set…It brings everyone together. Even if you’ve never painted in your life, you are encouraged to grab a palette, pour some paint, and take a paintbrush to the Cube. This project is more than art, it’s about expanding your thought process through your own art form that is your mind and when you project those thoughts through your hands, magic happens.

When I asked Scott what his favorite part about the Life Cube is, he responded “I really love talking to the kids.” Hearing that sure warmed my heart! He’s spoken at over 40 schools, and has even driven outside of big cities to reach children that would unlikely experience the Cube because of their remote location. He also gave each school a smaller cube of their own to paint and contribute to the project. These are called “satellite cubes” made of canvas and wood. Some of which are scattered around the Life Cube like satellites around the Earth. Each one has two slits in the top, which are there for these “Wish Stick” cards:

Scott’s goal is to take his project around the world. He has received an amazing amount of positive feedback from anyone who has been around the Life Cube, and that’s what keeps his dream alive. Not only his dream, but others as well! He told me that many people have reached out to him and thanked him for helping their dreams turn into reality. Tear-filled thank you’s and warm heartfelt hugs. I started to tear up just hearing that, because I understand and feel it too; a very high-vibrational energy field can be felt around the Life Cube. You just have to feel it for yourself.

Now, I’m gonna come back to a word I mentioned earlier: “temporary”. What do I mean by that? Well on Saturday April 2nd at 8:00 pm, the Life Cube is going up in flames! That’s right, all the art, dreams, wishes, and aspirations are being turned into smoke. It sure is an amazing sight to see. You do not want to miss this. You are encouraged to come early to celebrate with the community, but are welcome to visit any time of day or night. It’s located in downtown Las Vegas on Fremont Street, between 9th & 10th street across from Atomic Liquor. You literally cannot miss it!

I’d like to give a special THANK YOU to the lovely Pearl Frank, who took the time to help me make sure I covered all the amazing aspects to the Life Cube Project. You are such an inspiration to us all!

We are all connected. Those times you have random thoughts about what other people are doing? Yeah, we all have those. This image puts it all into perspective; he’s doing that and they’re doing this while the people below them are doing something completely different.

There is a young couple sitting on a crumpled up futon mattress, watching a baby crawling into a mans lap. There’s another man sitting next to him. Possibly the young couple adopted out their child to a gay couple who wanted kids. The girl in the black polka dot cardigan reminds me of Alia, a friend of mine who recently lost her battle to cancer at 26 😦 Glasses, curly hair. Too much right now.

Then you have a girl lying in her bed. She looks sad. Hands strewn across her belly, she looks pregnant. Disappointed. Wondering what the fuck she should do. There’s a boy on his phone sitting next to the bed, maybe wonder what he should do to make her feel better.
Cats strewn about, people reading, some just sitting, thinking, talking. It’s in these simple quiet moments that we don’t realize how strongly we are all connected. It’s only a thought away.

Take a look at the rest of Vidal’s work, she delivers such a strong message and puts exquisite detail into all of her paintings!

Check out her galleryhere and read an up close and personal interview here.

I’ve been having a difficult time creating art (like most artists do) and it’s horrible. Anxiety, loss of inspiration, depression, insomnia..etc. We’ve all been there. But my biggest concern is: what are we to do when lacking inspiration??
One word: MUSIC. Thankfully, once again, music has got my back.

We all have that one band that takes us away from ourselves, our reality. Lately I’ve been obsessed with Boombox. Such mood-lifting beats! Funkadelic, sexy, and groovy, they bring me back to a time before I was born…making me want to snap my fingers and move my body. Great dancing music!!

The basslines are what really get me. They grab hold of my mind and make the rest of the world disappear. I love listening to them while driving around in my work van, windows down and stereo way up! I don’t care if other drivers see me dancing around, in fact I hope it puts a smile on their face to see someone groovin so hard 😎

Grab your headphones and put on this playlist. You won’t be disappointed.

I first saw Stephen Kruse painting live at a magical music festival in Colorado called Sonic Bloom. His work was displayed alongside many other pieces by an array of local artists. As I walked through the gallery, this painting jumped out at me.

The smooth blending of colors made me feel…peaceful. Everything around me sort of faded out. I was amazed how the lines intertwined so perfectly into each other.

The use of geometry is probably my favorite signature of his, it’s flawless. Detailed but also simple, the depth of his work speaks to me in a way I’ve not experienced through abstract art. It seems as though it’s moving right in front of your eyes! Take a look at the triangle pattern in the background; so realistic it’s as if you could climb in there and take a nap.

The fluid lines direct your gaze through the painting so that you observe every shape and color…oh, the color! I mean who doesn’t like purple? It makes me feel sexy and fun, like it should be hanging above the bed in a castle.

I highly encourage you to take a look through the rest of his work, I’m sure you will find something that speaks to your soul the way this one speaks to mine. Check out his Facebook page here.

Upon first glance, this painting makes me feel a bit uneasy. However, the cool combination of blue and green puts a blanket of comfort over my emotions.

As I look deeper into the background, I notice that the seemingly abstract shapes resemble a city at the edge of the sea. There are clouds floating through the sky and across the moon. There is a man sitting in contemplation gazing upwards (toward the moon?).

As the title suggests, he is attempting to relax, but his thoughts have got the best of him. I believe that Taskovski was trying to portray how much goes on behind closed eyes. Countless times I’ve tried to meditate, or just sit in silcnce, but the stresses of everyday life come flooding towards me. I’m sure we can all relate to that.

I encourage you to take a closer look at the shapes and textures scattered throughout this piece and notice how well they come together to form a story or situation.

The overall mood of this piece has a dark feel to it, especially upon closer inspection of the mans face.

I really enjoy it and hope you do as well. If you have a moment, it’s worth the effort to look at Taskovskis online gallery, it is simply mind-blowing!